ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
President's Secretariat
President of India's Greetings on the Eve of janmashtami
The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu in her message on the eve of Janmashtami has said: -
“On the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami, I extend my warm greetings and best wishes to all my fellow citizens living in India and abroad.
The auspicious festival of Janmashtami is celebrated to mark the birthday of Lord Krishna. This is also an opportunity to learn from the life teachings of Lord Krishna. This festival promotes the spirit of love and devotion among the people. Lord Krishna has shown the way to establish an ideal society by fighting against injustice and following the path of Dharma and justice. Lord Krishna has given the message of 'Nishkam Karma' through the teachings of Gita.
Let us all take a pledge to follow the path shown by Lord Krishna and contribute to strengthen our society and nation by moving forward with the spirit of well-being of humanity”.
Please click here to see the president's Message
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
Largest ever Contingent of 8500 players from across the country to participate in the 4th Khelo India Youth Games: Shri Anurag Thakur
Five traditional sports in Khelo India Youth Games 2021: Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports
Logo, Anthem, Jersey and Mascot for the Khelo India Youth Games 2021 launched today in Panchkula
Largest ever contingent of 8500 players from across the country would participate in the 4th Khelo India Youth Games. The Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports Shri Anurag Thakur said this during the launch of Logo, Anthem, Jersey and Mascot for the Khelo India Youth Games 2021 today in Indradhanush Auditorium, Panchkula. The minister said Haryana with just about 2% of the country's population has given the country a major share of medals in most of the sports events. Haryana Chief Minister Shri Manohar Lal, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Shri Dhushyant Chautala, Haryana Legislative Assembly speaker Shri Gyan Chand Gupta, Haryana Minister of Sports Shri Sandeep Singh, Former Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Government of India Shri Rattan Lal Kataria and Haryana Chief Secretary Shri Sanjeev Kaushal also graced the event.
Stressing for the preservation of traditional sports, Shri Thakur said that five traditional games namely Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta, Mallakhamba and Yogasana would be part of the upcoming Khelo India Youth Games 2021. He said that the Youth Games and the recently concluded University Games under Khelo India would definitely inspire youth to go for big targets in future. The Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports said that the Government of India is steadfast in its efforts for the athletes to excel.
Stating that the state is fully preparing for the event, Haryana Chief Minister Shri Manohar Lal thanked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving opportunity to the state for hosting Khelo India Youth games 2021. The Chief Minister also said that the state is not just producing food grains for the country but also medals through their sportspersons. Sports are good for both physical and mental fitness, the Chief Minister added.
Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Shri Dhushyant Chautala, Haryana Minister of Sports Shri Sandeep Singh, Haryana Assembly Speaker Shri Gyan Chand Gupta and Former Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Shri Rattan Lal Kataria along other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.
‘Jaya’ the black buck and ‘Vijay’ the tiger are the mascots for Khelo India Youth Games. The name of the Mascot for Haryana for Khelo India Youth Games-21 is ‘Dhakad’. The 4th Khelo India Youth Games is going to be held from 4 June to 13 June in Haryana.
Ministry of Women and Child Development
Monitoring Mechanism Under Poshan Abhiyaan
Supplementary Nutrition under Anganwadi Services, primarily designed to bridge the gap between the Recommended Dietary Allowance  and the Average Daily Intake , is provided to the beneficiaries of Anganwadi Services through a network of Anganwadi Centres located across the country as per the following norms for 300 days in a year:
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Categories
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Types of food
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1.
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Children

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Exclusive Breast feeding for first 6 months of life.
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2.
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Children

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Take Home Ration in the form that is palatable to the child. It could be given in the form of micro-nutrient fortified food and/or energy dense food.
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3.
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Severely mal-nourished children

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Same type of food as above with food supplement of 800 calories of energy and 20-25 gms. of Protein.
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4.
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Children

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Morning snack in the form of milk/banana/seasonal fruits etc. and Hot cooked Meal.
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5.
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Severely mal-nourished children

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Additional 300 calories of energy and 8-10 gms. of Protein in the form of micro-nutrient fortified food and/or energy dense food.
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6.
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Pregnant women &Nursing mothers
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Take Home Ration in the form of micro-nutrient fortified food and/or energy dense food.
The scheme is universal, self-selecting and open to all the eligible beneficiaries without any pre-condition.
Government has issued Streamlined Guidelines dated 13.1.2021 under which district officials in the State are mandated to conduct periodic monitoring including surprise spot-checks, draw samples for quality testing of supplementary nutrition , ensure that adequate measures for food safety and hygiene are followed throughout the supply chain etc., and undertake necessary course correction.
This information was given by the Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
Easing of rules under SCDPM 2.0 etc for grant of pensionary benefits to Central Government employees
Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare has launched a major campaign on easing of rules during the Special Campaign 2.0.
Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare administers pension related policy matters in respect to Central Government civil employees. This Department has also been entrusted work related to pensioners’ welfare. In order to ensure timely payment of pensionary benefits to retired Government servants/family members and to enhance “Ease of living” of pensioners after their retirement, this Department simplifies rules and issues guidelines/instructions to Ministries/Departments, Pension disbursing banks etc.
Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare has undertaken a massive campaign to review and simplify pension rules and issued instructions during the Special Campaign 2.0 launched by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances  for disposal of Pending Matters during 2nd October, 2022 to 31st October 2022. Parameters for the Special Campaign include number of rules/process identified for simplification.
Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare has issued thirty  such Notifications/Circulars during the month of October, 2022 in SCDPM 2.0. The detail of some of these important Notifications/Circulars is related to:-
- Orders related to enhancement of Dearness Relief from 34 % to 38%.
- Simplification of Rule 8 of CCS  Rules, 2021 delegating thereby authority to decide disciplinary matters of Central Government Employees after their retirement.
- Instruction related to maximum ceiling of contribution under General Provident Fund during financial year.
- Instructions related to counting of past service and treatment of service as qualifying service for pensionary benefits.
- Instruction related to grant of gratuity, nomination for payment of gratuity and payment of interest on delayed payment of pension/family pension/gratuity.
Instructions relating to different provisions of grant of pension under the CCS  Rules, 2021, including limitation of pension, on invalidation, compulsory retirement, dismissal/removal from service and effect of future good conduct on pension.
Ministry of Electronics & IT
Phase 2 of Visvesvaraya PhD Scheme launched by IT Minister Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw
Scheme aims to support researchers in ESDM & IT/ITES
Scheme is manifestation of Prime Minister’s vision of providing world class education to students at bottom in society: Shri Vaishnaw
Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Electronics & Information Technology, launched Phase II of Visvesvaraya PhD Scheme to promote research in 42 emerging technologies in Electronics System Design & Manufacturing  and Information Technology / Information Technology Enabled Services virtually here today.
Dedicating the scheme to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on his birthday, Shri Vaishnaw, said that the scheme is manifestation of Prime Minister’s vision of providing world class education and opportunities for research and development to the students at the bottom of the pyramid in society. This scheme supports the talent that we have in our country. He further said that the results of 1st phase of the scheme are really encouraging with 63 global patents and publication of thousands of research papers in reputed international journals.
The Minister said that it’s high time to scale up the scheme massively as we are going rapidly into high-tech industries especially semiconductor manufacturing and telecom manufacturing and soon we will realise the vision of Prime Minister to have our own 4G core network and 5G core network in India.
Shri Ajay Sawhney, Secretary, MeitY mentioned that Visvesvaraya PhD Scheme serves the purpose of increasing the number of doctorates in the areas of ESDM & IT/ITES along with a focus on improving the research infrastructure at the research institutions and encouraging young faculty to undertake research in emerging areas. Phase II of the scheme is being launched with enhanced features to serve the purpose of productive research in India.
Visvesvaraya PhD Scheme was initiated by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology  in 2014 with the approval of Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs  with an objective to enhance number of PhDs in ESDM & IT/ITES sectors. PhD seats were allocated to 97 institutions  in 25 states and 4 Union Territories. At present 492 Full-time & 268 Part-time PhD Fellows are pursuing while 422 Full Time & 43 Part Time PhD have submitted thesis or completed PhD. During the event achievements of Phase I of the Visvesvaraya PhD scheme were also celebrated.
Phase II of the scheme aims to support 1000 Full Time PhD Candidates, 150 Part Time PhD Candidates, 50 Young Faculty Research Fellowships and 225 Post-Doctoral Fellowships.
Many dignitaries from academia and Ministry of Electronics & IT  graced the event. Few of the eminent speakers present at the event were Shri. Ajay Sawhney, Secretary MeitY; Dr. B.K. Murthy, GC, R&D, MeitY; Shri Abhishek Singh, MD & CEO, DIC; Dr. Vinay Thakur, Sr. Director , DIC and Shri Manoj Jain, Scientist F, MeitY. The research work carried during Phase I of the scheme was highly appreciated by the one and all.
RKJ/M
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
India continues to be among the countries with lowest per million cases & per million deaths, and very high testing
Sustains trend of consistent low level of Active Cases
With focussed strategy and proactive as well as calibrated measures of the Union Government along with the States and UTs, India has sustained its global position of being the country with one of the lowest cases per million population and deaths per million population.
While the global figure for cases/million is 5,552, India is recording 5,790. USA, Brazil, France, UK, Russia, and South Africa are reporting much higher numbers.
The deaths per million populations in India are 87, substantially lower than the world average of 148. India’s targeted strategies in COVID-19 management and the proactive as well as calibrated public health response over the last several months have resulted in encouraging outcomes.
In the matter of total tests conducted, India is one of the topmost countries. With 10,66,786 tests in the last 24 hours, the cumulative number of tests conducted has crossed 10.5 Cr .
Widespread and comprehensive testing on a sustained basis have aided the early identification and timely effective treatment which has resulted in higher recoveries and lower fatality rate. India’s Case Fatality Rate presently is 1.50%.
India continues to report a trend of steadily decreasing active cases. Presently the active cases comprise merely 7.64% of the total positive cases of the country standing at 6,10,803. The total recovered cases are 72,59,509.
43,893 new cases have been registered in the last 24 hours in the country whereas the new recovered cases stand at 58,439. 77% of the new recovered cases are in 10 States/UTs.
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala contribute more than 7,000 to the single day recoveries.
79% of new confirmed cases are from 10 States and UTs. Kerala has overtaken Maharashtra with the highest number of new reported cases. Both are still contributing more than 5,000 new cases. The States which are reporting spurt in cases are Delhi, West Bengal, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
508 case fatalities have been reported in the past 24 hours. Of these, nearly 79% are concentrated in ten States/UTs.
Maharashtra has contributed the maximum to the new fatalities with 115 deaths.
Department of Space
India’s communication satellite GSAT-31 launched successfully from French Guiana
India’s latest communication satellite, GSAT-31 was successfully launched from the Spaceport in French Guiana during the early hours today.
The launch vehicle Ariane 5 VA-247 lifted off from Kourou Launch Base, French Guiana at 2:31 am  carrying India’s GSAT-31 and Saudi Geostationary Satellite 1/Hellas Sat 4 satellites, as scheduled.
After a 42-min flight, GSAT-31 separated from the Ariane 5 upper stage in an elliptical Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit with a perigee  of 250 km and an apogee  of 35,850 km, inclined at an angle of 3.0 degree to the equator.
With a lift-off mass of 2536 kg, GSAT-31 will augment the Ku-band transponder capacity in Geostationary Orbit. The satellite will provide continuity to operational services on some of the in-orbit satellites. GSAT-31 derives its heritage from ISRO’s earlier INSAT/GSAT satellite series.
“GSAT-31 has a unique configuration of providing flexible frequency segments and flexible coverage. The satellite will provide communication services to Indian mainland and islands” ISRO Chairman Dr K Sivan said.
Dr. Sivan also remarked that “GSAT-31 will provide DTH Television Services, connectivity to VSATs for ATM, Stock-exchange, Digital Satellite News Gathering  and e-governance applications. The satellite will also be used for bulk data transfer for a host of emerging telecommunication applications.”
After separation from Ariane-5 upper stage, the two solar arrays of GSAT-31 were automatically deployed in quick succession and ISRO's Master Control Facility at Hassan in Karnataka took over the command and control of GSAT-31 and found its health parameters normal.
In the days ahead, scientists will undertake phase-wise orbit-raising manoeuvres to place the satellite in Geostationary Orbit  using its on-board propulsion system.
During the final stages of its orbit raising operations, the antenna reflector of GSAT-31 will be deployed. Following this, the satellite will be put in its final orbital configuration. The satellite will be operational after the successful completion of all in-orbit tests.
Cabinet
Cabinet approves MoU between India and Maldives for Shipping
MoU to paveway for ferry services between Maldives & Kerala
Connecting Kochi with Male & Kulhudhuffushi in Maldives by Sea route
The Union Cabinet has given ex-post facto approval for the MoU between India and Maldives for the establishment of passenger and cargo services by sea, which was signed on June 8, 2019 during the visit of Prime Minister of India to Maldives.
India is a leading development partner of Maldives and has established many of the leading institutions of Maldives. Currently, India has provided US $100 million Stand-by Credit facility  to Maldives, including long-term loans and revolving credit for trade.
Male, the capital and most populous city and Kulhudhuffushi, the third most populous city of Maldives are good prospects for introduction of ferry service from Kochi for both tourists as well as cargo. While Male is situated at a distance of 708 Kms from Kochi, Kulhudhuffushi is 509 Kms away. Kulhudhuffushi and the islands around are a major population centre in the northern part of Maldives and have a large number of resorts which could be possible tourist destinations for Indians. Present connectivity involves flights to Male and sea planes to the resorts, which is an expensive option. On the other hand, connectivity with Kochi through sea could promote inbound tourism, particularly health and wellness tourism for India. A large number of Maldivians also travel to Kerala and other South Indian cities for educational purposes.
With a view to harness the potential opportunity that lies in passenger and cargo transportation by sea between the two countries, this MoU with Maldives has been signed. The proposed ferry service would contribute in a big way to promote people to people contact and to boost bilateral trade.
Ministry of Culture
“Meri Maati Mera Desh” Campaign’s first phase witnesses massive public participation
More than 2.33 lakh Shilaphalakams dedicated to freedom fighters and security forces built across 36 States/UTs
~4 crore Panch Pran pledges; 2 Lakh+ Braveheart felicitation programmes; 2.63 lakh Amrit Vatikas created
All set to enter second phase to reach every single household in the country
“Meri Maati Mera Desh”, a nationwide campaign was launched on 9th August 2023 to pay tribute to the ‘Veers’ who laid down their lives for the country. This campaign is the concluding event of the 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav,' which began on 12th March 2021, and has witnessed widespread public participation  with over 2 lakh programs organized across India.
The campaign features programs like the establishment of Shilaphalakams dedicated to freedom fighters and security forces, as well as initiatives like Panch Pran Pledge, Vasudha Vandan, Veeron ka Vandan which venerates the gallant sacrifices of our Bravehearts.
The first phase of Meri Maati Mera Desh campaign has proven to be a phenomenal success with widespread reach and enormous public participation. More than 2.33 lakh Shilaphalakams have been built across 36 States/UTs till date. Almost 4 crore Panch Pran pledge selfies have been uploaded on website till date. 2 Lakh+ Braveheart felicitation programmes have been organized across the country. Under the Vasudha Vandan theme, more than 2.36 crore indigenous saplings have been planted and 2.63 lakh Amrit Vatikas created.
Now the campaign is all set to enter its second phase with Amrit Kalash Yatras planned across the country. As a pan India outreach campaign, its aim is to touch every household of the country. Mitti and rice grains are being collected from over 6 lakh villages in rural areas and from wards in urban areas across India. In rural regions, it will be combined at the block level to create block-level kalash. After a ceremonial send-off from the State capital, these kalash will come to Delhi for the National Programme. In urban areas, mitti is being collected from wards and brought to larger urban local bodies for mixing and transportation to Delhi through the State capital. It's expected that more than 8500 kalash will arrive in Delhi by the end of October for the final program. The soil collected from all corners of India will be placed in the Amrit Vatika and Amrit Memorial, creating a legacy to commemorate the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
Photos of Meri Maati Mera Desh campaign are available at following link:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ZbRRp1YP893V6LBfibaQJeoK3vBOLoc9?usp=drive_link
Ministry of Railways
No bids invited recently for running passenger trains on PPP mode
A news item published in a prominent daily and its digital version stated that Indian Railways has for the first time invited bids from private entities to run 150 pairs of passenger trains through PPP mode. It also stated that private entities shall have the liberty to decide passenger fares on these trains.
Dismissing these misleading media reports, Ministry of Railways clarifies that no such proposal is under consideration and neither any bids have been invited recently.
Therefore such reports are factually incorrect and stakeholders should not take cognizance of it.
Ministry of Defence
Attack of Pakistani Forces on Indian Positions
There have been no attacks by Pakistani forces on Indian positions along the Line of Control and International Border with Pakistan. However, Pakistan troops have been resorting to persistent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control. There have been 2453 incidents of Ceasefire Violations along Line of Control in Jammu region in this year . In addition, 192 incidents of cross-border firing have occurred along Indo-Pak International Border in Jammu region in this year .
There have been 10 fatal casualties of Army personnel occurred along Line of Control/International Border in cross border firing by Pakistani forces in the last six months. The details of casualties of Pakistan side cannot be ascertained accurately.
Appropriate retaliation to the ceasefire violations, as required, has been carried out by Indian Army/BSF. In addition, all the cases of ceasefire violations are taken up with Pakistan authorities through the established mechanisms of hotlines, flag meetings, Directorate General of Military Operations talks as well as diplomatic channels between the two countries. BSF too holds talks at various levels with its counterpart viz. Pakistan Rangers.
Diplomatically, India has repeatedly emphasized, including at the highest level, the need for Pakistan to uphold the sanctity of the Line of Control  and the International Border in Jammu & Kashmir as its obligations emanating from the Shimla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration.
This information was given by Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Shripad Naik in a written reply toDr. Fauzia Khan in Rajya Sabha today.
ABB/Nampi/KA/DK
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Ministry of Power
SJVN provides Rs 1 Cr for buying ventilators
SJVN Limited, a Miniratna PSU under the Union Ministry of Power, has taken several measures to deal with this coronavirus  pandemic, which has taken the world by storm. In this time of crisis, the central PSU has agreed in principle to provide Rs 1 crore to combat coronavirus.
Nand Lal Sharma, SJVN Limited’s Chairman & Managing Director  , has told that this amount will be utilised for procuring six ventilators by Indira Gandhi Medical College Hospital, Shimla and five ventilators by Dr Rajender Prasad Medical College, Tanda and some ventilators in Rampur Hospital at Khaneri. SJVN Limited will also extend financial support to provide other essential items like masks, sanitizers and gloves to these health institutions.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
All lanes of fee plazas on National Highways declared as “FASTag Lane of the fee plaza” for collection of fee through digital payment
Government has declared all lanes of fee plazas on National Highways as “FASTag lane of the fee plaza” for collection of user fee through digital payment via FASTag w.e.f. midnight of 15th/16th February 2021. At present, all fee plazas on National Highways are fully equipped with FASTag system. After declaration of all lanes as FASTag Lanes, the overall FASTag penetration has reached approximately 96%, from 80% on 14th February, 2021. As on 14th July, 2021, more than 3.54 crore FASTags have been issued.
Improvement in process/technology for collection of user fee is a continuous process. Efforts are also made towards adoption of new technology & process.
Mandatory provision of an airbag for the driver and co-driver has been made under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.
This information was given by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
MJPS
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